Biography

American jazz musician, composer, arranger and pianist, he worked with the likes of Billy Eckstine, Dizzy Gillespie, and Count Basie.He began his career as a pianist and made a special name for himself by arranging for swing bands beginning in 1938 In 1947 he was named Best New Jazz Arranger by Esquire magazine. In 1956 he released his album "Mating Call" with John Coltrane.

He suffered from a drug addiction and was arrested in 1958; he spent the next two years in jail but resumed his musical career upon his release.